week 5 post 2: design principles- mapping and affordances- similarities and differences

     There are 4 sets of designs principles that cover the 15 main principles in HCI (Human Computer Interaction) that are essential in order to keep design both simple and usable. The first two are mapping and affordances. Mapping is used in HCI to describe the relationship between the interface and real-world equivalents. Interfaces should speak the language of the users who use it, favoring language in their terms vs system-oriented language. The use of cut, copy, paste instead of duplicate, since this maps better to terms and actions that users already know. Affordances on the other hand are interfaces that “hint at” the way they are meant to be used. The interface’s perceived affordance might be at odds with its actual affordance. Examples are a door with a handle seems like it should be pulled, but the door actually needs to be pushed. adding signifiers to the interface to help a perceived affordance match the actual affordance (example is a label next to the door handle that says “push”). Mapping and affordances are similar principles, so it is important not to mix the two because they have clear important differences. 

Affordances are about creating interfaces where their designs suggested how they are supposed to be used. Mapping refers to creating interfaces where the design makes it clear what the effect will be when using them, not just creating interfaces where it is clear how they are supposed to have used them. They are different, but still strongly related. Our affordances are defined by who the user is. If someone did grow up around door handles for example it would not seem that simple to look at it and understand how it works and that's why it is challenging virtually because it cannot really connect affordances from physical objects to digital interfaces. The challenge is that in the virtual computer world, there's no such inherent connection between the physical design and the function of an interface, the way it is found in the real world.